扫除天下

掃除天下

sǎochú-tiānxià

idiom

Meanings

1 to sweep clean the empire
2 to set the world in order
3 to eliminate evil from the realm

Characters

remove / eliminate

below (天下 = the realm)

Examples

HSK 7-9

大丈夫志在扫除天下。

Dàzhàngfu zhì zài sǎochú-tiānxià.

A true man's ambition is to set the whole world right.

HSK 7-9

他从小就立志扫除天下，匡扶正义。

Tā cóngxiǎo jiù lìzhì sǎochú-tiānxià, kuāngfú zhèngyì.

From a young age he was determined to cleanse the realm and uphold justice.

Tips

history

From 《后汉书·陈蕃传》 (Book of the Later Han, Biography of Chen Fan): when young Chen Fan was scolded for not sweeping his own room, he replied 大丈夫处世，当扫除天下，安事一室乎 (A real man, born into this world, should sweep clean the empire - why bother with one room?). The phrase has come to symbolize lofty political ambition.

Stroke Order

扫 sǎo

除 chú

天 tiān

下 xià